boston cream cake

This was for my 5yr old on her birthday , her present craze was Dora the explorer.

The cake is a Boston cream pie .Don't be fooled by the name of this wonderful confection . Its actually a cake , layered with thick vanilla custard and topped with a melting chocolate ganache.

For the cake :

 170g butter , at room temp

140 g caster sugar

3 eggs

140 g self -raising flour

1 tsp vanilla essence

 Preheat the oven to 180 deg C . Grease two 8-in round cake tins , then line the bottoms with wax paper.

Beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy . Beat in the eggs one at a time .Sift the flour over the bowl , add the vanilla essence and stir until thoroughly combined . Spoon the batter into the cake tins and spread out evenly . Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown and the cake springs back when pressed lightly . Turn the cakes out onto a wire rack , gently peel off the waxed paper and let it cool .

For the custard :

120 ml milk

160ml nestle cream

3 egg yolks

2 tbsp caster sugar

2 tbsp plain flour

1 tsp vanilla essence

Warm the milk and cream in a pan until almost boiling , then set aside . ina bowl , whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until creamy , add the vanilla essence , then whisk in the flour . Whisking constantly , slowly pour in the hot milk , then pour back into the pan . Heat gently , stirring , for about 2 minutes until thick. Pour into a bowl , press clingflim over th surface , cool and then chill .

To serve ,spread the chilled custard over one of the cakes, then place the second cake on top.

For the chocolate ganache :

100g dark chocolate

120 ml whipping cream

Chop the chocolate finely and put in a heat proof bowl . Heat the cream until almost boiling , then pour it over the chocolate and leave to stand for 5 minutes . stir until smooth . Allow to cool and thicken slightly, then pour over the cake .

Serves 8 approx